Regen for Linux and Windows

byuu · Post by **byuu** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 2:15 pm

Drat, wasn't meaning to get a new page with this post.

many people still seem to prefer IPS files rather than UPS (IMHO), are there any advantages in using UPS instead of IPS?.

It's because IPS is more than ten years old, and UPS less than one. Human nature is such that we prefer what we're used to, regardless of technical merit.

The advantages are being able unpatch a hard-patched game with the same file, support for files larger than 16MB (required for GBA/NDS), more optimized and simplified file format that leaves compression up to true archivers (smaller patches), and you can actually verify if you patched correctly or not.

The last one is the biggest allure. While Genesis is nowhere near as bad as the SNES in this regard, let's say someone makes a patch against an interleaved SMD file. But your ROM is BIN. Your patch won't work, because it has no way of knowing whether the patch was made against the SMD or BIN version. With UPS, a quick CRC check will tell you.

It can also warn you if you patched the wrong version of a ROM, too. So you don't get random errors while playing.

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 2:32 pm

Not to mention it's quite easy to create a UPS patch. All you need is a patched version of the original game, and the original unmodified game ROM and it can form a patch from the difference.

Although, I'm guessing if you edit the checksum of a Genesis ROM, it'll change the CRC (so that's a bad thing, so don't modify your original ROMs).

If you need a patch for something from an IPS patch, just tell me and I'll happily create a UPS patch from it.

AamirM · Post by **AamirM** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 3:15 pm

Hi,

I tried setting the fullscreen resolution to 1280x1024 but the emulator won't let me (my computer's resolution is even set to 1280x1024) and the maximum I can use is 1280x768, am I doing something wrong?

Is this resolution listed under "Fullscreen resolution" sub menu?

But I'd like to point out Turbo Mode doesn't work when VSync is enabled.

In windowed mode, its supposed to be this way. Until vblank doesn't occur, DirectX blocks the emu in windowed mode so I can do nothing. Then you'll think how Kega does it. Well, it seems to skip frames while in turbo mode while in Regen, no frame is skipped. If this is happening in fullscreen, then there maybe a problem

Btw, I have noted down the bugs you reported. Thanks.

It's because IPS is more than ten years old, and UPS less than one. Human nature is such that we prefer what we're used to, regardless of technical merit.

Not to mention there are many different types of IPS formats (Ninja Turtle or something..). In UPS, nothing is over-complexified or limited like in IPS. So I am just going to add UPS because I want this to become the standard patching system since its better than IPS everywhere.

stay safe,

AamirM

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 3:24 pm

AamirM wrote:
But I'd like to point out Turbo Mode doesn't work when VSync is enabled.
In windowed mode, its supposed to be this way. Until vblank doesn't occur, DirectX blocks the emu in windowed mode so I can do nothing. Then you'll think how Kega does it. Well, it seems to skip frames while in turbo mode while in Regen, no frame is skipped. If this is happening in fullscreen, then there maybe a problem

Hmmm, this is odd because I was able to use Turbo Mode while in windowed mode with VSync on. Now when I turn VSync off, the video rate seems to be draggy, so I guess I have to do without Turbo Mode from now on. =(

P.S. Oh, and I tested fullscreen just now, and no Turbo Mode when VSync is enabled.

EDIT: Actually, I noticed if I hold down Backspace for Turbo Mode while windowed + VSync it actually tries to skip some frames.

Gary_Oak · Post by **Gary_Oak** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 3:50 pm

AamirM wrote:Hi,

I tried setting the fullscreen resolution to 1280x1024 but the emulator won't let me (my computer's resolution is even set to 1280x1024) and the maximum I can use is 1280x768, am I doing something wrong?
Is this resolution listed under "Fullscreen resolution" sub menu?

Yes it is AamirM. I have selected 1024x768 (I'm currently using this resolution) but even if I select 1280x1024 the check mark will still be on 1024x768 and Regen will run games at fullscreen in that resolution.

Fras · Post by **Fras** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 3:52 pm

1360x768 and 1440x900 seems to be unavailable. Tried to set it by editing regen.ini, not sure if it worked though... the marker that shows set resolution disappeared.

Edit: Ok, editing the .ini file works, it just doesn't show up in the resolution list.

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 4:13 pm

Might of found something new (and Game Genie related). A code for Sonic 3 & Knuckles, which is for disabling of the Super/Hyper Sonic/Tails/Knuckles music doesn't work in Regen while it does in Kega.

Here's the long code in GG form...

REPA-C6YR,
REPA-C6YT,
REPA-C6YW,
REPA-C6YY,
RFJT-C61Y,
RFJT-C610,
RFJT-C612,
RFJT-C614,
RF6T-C6V0,
RF6T-C6V2,
RF6T-C6V4,
RF6T-C6V6,
RHPA-C6V0,
RHPA-C6V2,
RHPA-C6V4,
RHPA-C6V6,
RHPT-C6VE,
RHPT-C6VG,
RHPT-C6VJ,
RHPT-C6VL,
RFPT-T6YC

21 codes to disable the music. In Kega, it converts GG codes to the Hex format, which is in this form...

011A8E:4E71,
011A90:4E71,
011A92:4E71,
011A94:4E71,
0151F4:4E71,
0151F6:4E71,
0151F8:4E71,
0151FA:4E71,
017936:4E71,
017938:4E71,
01793A:4E71,
01793C:4E71,
01DA36:4E71,
01DA38:4E71,
01DA3A:4E71,
01DA3C:4E71,
01DB24:4E71,
01DB26:4E71,
01DB28:4E71,
01DB2A:4E71,
085B82:4E71

But either form, the code doesn't work in Regen, but does work in Kega. Any idea why?

MOD EDIT: Please use a list next time, it's bad for the forum how you had it in one run-on blob.

AamirM · Post by **AamirM** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 4:31 pm

Hi,

Yes it is AamirM. I have selected 1024x768 (I'm currently using this resolution) but even if I select 1280x1024 the check mark will still be on 1024x768 and Regen will run games at fullscreen in that resolution.

1360x768 and 1440x900 seems to be unavailable. Tried to set it by editing regen.ini, not sure if it worked though... the marker that shows set resolution disappeared.

Can you both list all the resolutions that show up is that list?

But either form, the code doesn't work in Regen, but does work in Kega. Any idea why?

Yep, too many codes!!

(really can't decide which smiley should go here)

stay safe,

AamirM

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 4:34 pm

No such thing as too many.

I assume there's a limit?

Is there any workarounds?

Found another sound issue in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. In Carnival Night Zone, when you hit one of the bumpers, the sound has a loud pop sometimes.

AamirM · Post by **AamirM** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 4:51 pm

Hi,

No such thing as too many. Wink I assume there's a limit? Razz Is there any workarounds?

Found another sound issue in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. In Carnival Night Zone, when you hit one of the bumpers, the sound has a loud pop sometimes.

Yes there is a limit of 5

. I didn't thought more than that would be used. The sound issues are probably because of Z80 timings. Are those correct in 0.85?

stay safe,

AamirM

I.S.T. · Post by **I.S.T.** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 4:53 pm

AamirM wrote:Not to mention there are many different types of IPS formats (Ninja Turtle or something..)

Ninja is actually a completely different patching format. The program itself allows one to use IPS patches, however.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 4:53 pm

AamirM wrote:Yep, too many codes!! (really can't decide which smiley should go here)

I'm more annoyed at the original posting of the codes... besides, IIRC, the Genesis Game Genie could hold a few codes... I forget it was 3 or 5... stupid inferior device (it wouldn't allow you to save for crying out loud).

AamirM · Post by **AamirM** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:14 pm

Hi,

... besides, IIRC, the Genesis Game Genie could hold a few codes... I forget it was 3 or 5... stupid inferior device (it wouldn't allow you to save for crying out loud).

Yeah. We should really emulate the PAR hardware, with its own ROM loaded along with the games ROM kinda like the real thing did. And one has to enter the code himself/herself. No cheat files or any such voodoo.

stay safe,

AamirM

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:18 pm

AFAIK, there were some documents written for code conversion (at least for the SNES.. I'm talking of Game Genie to PAR and vice versa).. same should also exist for the Genesis (hopefully).

AamirM · Post by **AamirM** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:51 pm

Hi,

In fact there are. But in reality, PAR could only intercept RAM unlike Game Genie where ROM could be intercepted. And don't confuse PAR with normal Hex codes. They just look similar (at least on Genesis).

stay safe,

AamirM

Fras · Post by **Fras** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:41 pm

AamirM wrote:Can you both list all the resolutions that show up is that list?

320x240
640x480
720x480
800x600
848x480
1024x768
1152x864
1280x720
1280x768 - Not selectable
1280x800
1280x960
1280x1024
1360x768 - Not selectable
1440x900 - Not selectable

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:48 pm

Most resolutions that are not selectable generally are those that unsupported by the monitor and/or video card combinations.

Gary_Oak · Post by **Gary_Oak** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:51 pm

AamirM wrote:Can you both list all the resolutions that show up is that list?

Sure

, here they are:

320x240
640x480
720x480
720x576
800x600
848x480
960x600
1024x768
1088x612
1152x864
1280x720
1280x768
1280x800 ----------- Doesn't work.
1280x960 ----------- Doesn't work.
1280x1024 ---------- Doesn't work.

Fras · Post by **Fras** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 7:08 pm

Deathlike2 wrote:Most resolutions that are not selectable generally are those that unsupported by the monitor and/or video card combinations.

I'm not sure if this is the case here - 1440x900 is the native resolution of my screen, works everywhere else. Unless I'm missing something of course... my knowledge of these things are a little limited.

neo_bahamut1985 · Post by **neo_bahamut1985** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 7:24 pm

Slight issue when you go from Fullscreen to Windowed mode; the mouse cursor completely disappears. While one can still navigate, not seeing the cursor makes it much harder. Not sure if anyone pointed this out yet. And savestates still sometimes mess up graphics (notably Sonic series).

AamirM · Post by **AamirM** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 7:45 pm

Hi,

I was looking into the problems reported by King of Chaos and here are some of my findings

.

Sonic 3 & Knuckles - The Sega sound sounds a little muffled (and it pops big time), and the issue with the plane in Angel Island Zone Act 2 still exists with popping and muffling. The good news is, the other music sounds more or less like Kega's. Smile I also turned off SuperHQ and set it to 44100Mz and took a listen to the music compared to Kega's and when it's off and downsampled like that, it sounds better.

Actually, its Regen that is getting it right. Although I didn't notice any poping. Kega runs the Z80 a bit fast and hence if you notice, the DAC will be a bit high pitched. Regen achieves DAC rates very close to the real thing. I tested this some time ago and the DAC speed was ~17.6 KHz on the real thing. In Regen it was (still is) ~17.9 Khz and on Kega it was ~19.7 KHz. This a known problem not only with Kega but all emulators. You may find posts on this issue on forums if you dig up.

Spider-Man Vs. The Kingpin - Still has pops here and there, and the high pitched sound in the warehouse level still exist (which it does crackle).

I cracked it! this sound is coming from the rats

. This is a PSG problem. I thought I fixed this. Somebody needs to conform this on real hardware.

For the heck of it, I loaded up Michael Jackson's Moonwalker (REV00) [!] and went into the sound test and listened to the music, and the song Billie Jean when it plays at certain points, the sound seems to skip.

I didn't notice any skipping. Again, Regen gets this right rather than Kega. If you listen closely, if you replay this track multiple times in Kega, the volume will differ in certain parts of this track each time. I will record and post this tommorrow (feeling too sleepy right now).

I couldn't test Robocop and X-Men because I am lousy player

. I will test them tommorrow.

@Fras and @Gary_Oak:

I think I found the problem. Thanks. I may PM you both a fixed version tommorrow.

stay safe,

AamirM

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 8:04 pm

AamirM wrote:In fact there are. But in reality, PAR could only intercept RAM unlike Game Genie where ROM could be intercepted. And don't confuse PAR with normal Hex codes. They just look similar (at least on Genesis).

That, and you can use hex based codes in a real Pro Action Replay, so in reality converted GG codes should work.

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 8:07 pm

AamirM wrote:
Spider-Man Vs. The Kingpin - Still has pops here and there, and the high pitched sound in the warehouse level still exist (which it does crackle).
I cracked it! this sound is coming from the rats . This is a PSG problem. I thought I fixed this. Somebody needs to conform this on real hardware.

Well, I have a good memory on this, and those sounds are NOT there on the original hardware. I mentioned this to Steve Snake when I first noticed it (I don't hear it in older versions of Kega), but he says it happens on hardware. We'll see.

I bet this issue is related to the Robocop FX issue too. Why the hell would a rat make such a high pitched noise?

AamirM wrote:
Found another sound issue in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. In Carnival Night Zone, when you hit one of the bumpers, the sound has a loud pop sometimes.
The sound issues are probably because of Z80 timings. Are those correct in 0.85?

Nope. Just tested v0.85 and hitting the bumpers make a crackle/pop sound.

I'll be uploading savestates for both X-Men and Robocop Vs. The Terminator for Regen and Kega here in a little bit.

Gary_Oak · Post by **Gary_Oak** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 8:37 pm

AamirM wrote:@Fras and @Gary_Oak:

I think I found the problem. Thanks. I may PM you both a fixed version tommorrow.

stay safe,

AamirM

Thanks AamirM, I'll keep my eye for that PM.

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 8:40 pm

Ok, here's some savestates I promised. I like to say the X-Men issue with partway through the second level seems fixed now. The music actually sounds better than Kega in this case. Robocop on the other hand... Kega gets the sound right. Load up each savestate in each emulator and fire the weapon and note the difference between the sound effects for both.

Download Savestates (for X-Men (U) [!] and Robocop Versus The Terminator (U) [!])

And I can't make the Moonwalker thing happen again... BUT... I do notice sound skipping in games every once in awhile, which was probably the cause to that. Other than that, the only sound issues I know of are;

Sonic 3 & Knuckles - Plane effects in Angel Island Zone Act 2 (which Kega does get right because I remember the sound from the real hardware), and the bumpers in Carnival Night Zone (Acts 1 and 2, which in Kega I can jump on and hear no problems). With the latter problem it sounds like it's being played too loud and it just pops.